BRPI0721452A2 - SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR COMBINING TEXT WITH THREE-CONTENT CONTENT - Google Patents

Abstract

A system (10) and method (52, 60, 72) for combining and/or displaying text with three-dimensional (3D) content. The system (10) and method (52, 60, 72) inserts text at the same level as the highest depth value in the 3D content. One example of 3D content is a two-dimensional image (44) and an associated depth map (46). In this case, the depth value of the inserted text (50) is adjusted to match the largest depth value of the given depth map. Another example of 3D content is a plurality of two-dimensional images and associated depth maps. In this case, the depth value of the inserted text is continuously adjusted to match the largest depth value of a given depth map. A further example of 3D content is stereoscopic content (82) having a right eye image (86) and a left eye image (84). In this case the text (88, 90) in one of the left eye image (84) and right eye image (86) is shifted to match the largest depth value in the stereoscopic image. Yet another example of 3D content is stereoscopic content having a plurality of right eye images and left eye images. In this case the text in one of the left eye images or right eye images is continuously shifted to match the largest depth value in the stereoscopic images. As a result, the system (10) and method (52, 60, 72) of the present disclosure produces text combined with 3D content wherein the text does not obstruct the 3D effects in the 3D content and does not create visual fatigue when viewed by a viewer.

Description

“SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MATCHING TEXT WITH THREE-CONTENT CONTENT” This claim claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119 of an interim application 60/918635 filed in the United States on March 16, 2007.

Technical Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates generally to display and image processing systems, and more particularly to a system and method for combining text with three-dimensional content.

Background of the invention

There are two types of text that can be added to video: subtitles for listeners and subtitles for the hearing impaired. Put generally, subtitles are intended for hearing audiences and subtitles for deaf audiences. Subtitles for listeners may translate the dialogue into a different language, but rarely show all audio. For example, subtitles for the hearing impaired show sound effects (for example, “ringing phone” and “steps”), while subtitles for listeners do not.

Hidden subtitles are subtitles that are hidden in a video signal, invisible without a special decoder. Hidden captions are hidden, for example, at line 21 of the line suppression range (VBI). Open subtitles are subtitles that have been decoded, so they have become an integral part of television image, like subtitles for listeners in a movie. In other words, open subtitles cannot be turned off. The term “open subtitles” is also used to refer to subtitles for listeners created with a character generator.

The use of 2D two-dimensional video text is known to those skilled in the art. The current interest in 3D three-dimensional film and video has created the need for techniques for adding text to 3D content. Therefore, there is a need for techniques to optimize the insertion of text into 3D content such that added text does not obstruct 3D effects in 3D content and does not create visual fatigue when 3D content is viewed.

summary

In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, system and method for combining and / or displaying text with 3D three-dimensional content are provided. The system and method inserts text at the same level as the highest depth value in 3D content. An example of 3D content is a two-dimensional image and an associated depth map. In this case, the depth value of the entered text is adjusted to match the larger depth value of the given depth map. Another example of 3D content is a plurality of two-dimensional images and associated depth maps. In this case, the depth value of the entered text is continuously adjusted to match the largest depth value of a given depth map. An additional example of 3D content is stereoscopic content having a right eye image and a left eye image. In this case the text in one of the left eye image and right eye image is shifted to match the greater depth value in the stereoscopic image. Yet another example of 3D content is stereoscopic content having a plurality of right eye images and left eye images. In this case the text in one of the left eye images or right eye images is continuously shifted to match the greater depth value in the stereoscopic images. As a result, the system and method of the present disclosure produce text combined with 3D content where text does not obstruct 3D effects on 3D content and does not create visual fatigue when viewed by a viewer.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method for combining text with three-dimensional image content receiving three-dimensional image content, determining a maximum depth value for three-dimensional content, and combining text with three-dimensional image content in maximum depth value.

According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, a method of displaying text with three-dimensional image content includes receiving three-dimensional image content and text, three-dimensional image content having a maximum depth value, displaying image content. and display the text at maximum depth.

According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, a system for combining text with three-dimensional image content includes means for receiving three-dimensional image content, means for determining a maximum depth value for three-dimensional content, and means for combining. text with three-dimensional image content at maximum depth value.

According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, a system for displaying text with three-dimensional image content includes means for receiving three-dimensional image content and text, the three-dimensional image content having a maximum depth value, means for displaying image content. three-dimensional image and a half to display the text at maximum depth value.

Brief Description of Drawings

These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will be described or will become apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, which should be read with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In drawings, where similar reference numerals indicate similar elements in all views:

Figure 1 is an exemplary illustration of a system for combining text with three-dimensional content according to one aspect of the present disclosure;

Figure 2 illustrates an example of a 2D image and a depth map associated with the 2D image;

Figure 3 illustrates an example of text added to the 2D image and the depth map associated with the 2D image in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating an off-line subtitle insertion process in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating an online subtitle insertion process according to the present disclosure;

Figure 6 illustrates an online subtitle insertion and detection process for listeners in accordance with the present disclosure; and Figure 7 illustrates an example of text combined with a stereo pair according to

with the present revelation.

It should be understood that the drawing (s) is (s) for the purpose of illustrating the concepts of revelation and is not necessarily the only possible configuration to illustrate the disclosure.

Detailed Description of Preferred Modes

It should be understood that the elements shown in the figures may be implemented in various forms of hardware, software or combinations thereof. Preferably, these elements are implemented in a combination of hardware and software on one or more appropriately programmed general purpose devices, which may include a processor, memory, and input / output interfaces.

The present description illustrates the principles of the present disclosure. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements which, although not explicitly described or shown here, embody the principles of revelation and are included in their spirit and scope.

All examples and conditional language mentioned here are for the purposes of

to help the reader understand the principles of revelation and the concepts contributed by the inventor to further the technique, and should be construed as being without limitation to such specifically mentioned examples and conditions.

In addition, all statements herein that mention principles, aspects, and modes of disclosure, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass both structural and functional equivalents thereof. Additionally, such equivalents are intended to include both currently known equivalents and future developed equivalents, that is, any developed elements that perform the same function, regardless of structure.

Thus, for example, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art who

The block diagrams presented herein represent conceptual views of illustrative circuit assemblies incorporating the principles of disclosure. Similarly, it will be recognized that any flowcharts, flow diagrams, state transition diagrams, pseudocode, and the like represent various processes that can be substantially represented on computer readable media and thereby performed by a computer or processor, whether whether or not this computer or processor is explicitly shown.

The functions of the various elements shown in the figures can be provided through the use of dedicated hardware as well as hardware capable of running software in association with appropriate software. When provided by a processor, the functions may be provided by a single dedicated processor, a single shared processor, or a plurality of individual processors, some of which may be shared. In addition, explicit use of the term "processor" or "controller" should not be construed as referring solely to hardware capable of running software, and may implicitly include, without limitation, "DSP" digital signal processor hardware, memory only. “ROM” readout for storing software, random access memory “RAM” and nonvolatile storage.

Other conventional and / or custom hardware may also be included. Similarly, any commutations shown in the figures are conceptual only. Its function can be accomplished through the operation of program logic, through dedicated logic, through program control interaction and dedicated logic, or even manually, the specific technique being selectable by the implementer as best understood. specifically from the context.

In the present claims, any element expressed as a means of performing a specific function is intended to encompass any mode of performing that function including, for example, a) a combination of circuit elements that performs that function or b) software in any form. therefore including firmware, microcode or the like, combined with appropriate circuitry to execute that software to perform the function. The disclosure as defined by such claims resides in the fact that the features provided by the various means mentioned are combined and joined in the manner the claims require. Accordingly, it is considered that any means that can provide these features is equivalent to those shown here.

Referring now to Figure 1, exemplary system components 10 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure are shown. A scanning device 12 may be provided for scanning film copies 14, for example, camera original film negatives, in a digital format, for example, a Cineon format or 35 Society of Motion Picture and Television files. Engineers (SMPTE) Digital Picture Exchange (DPX). The scanning device 12 may comprise, for example, a telecine or any device that will generate a video output from the movie, such as an Arri LocPro ™ with video output. Alternatively, files from the post-production process or digital cinema 16 (for example, files already in computer readable form) can be used directly. Potential sources of computer readable files are AVID ™ editors, DPX files, D5 tapes, etc. In addition, 3D content (for example, stereoscopic content or associated 2D images and depth maps) can be provided by a capture device 18 and text files 20 (for example, subtitle files for listeners or subtitles for the hearing impaired). can be created from a script and provided to the system by the listener's caption supervisor.

Scanned movie copies, digital movie images and / or 3D content as well as text files can be inserted into a postprocessing device 22, for example, a computer. Computer 22 may be implemented on any of several known computer platforms having hardware such as one or more central processing units (CPU), memory 24 as random access memory (RAM) and / or read-only memory (ROM) and input / output (I / O) user interface (s) 26 such as a keyboard, cursor control device (for example, a mouse or joystick), and display device. The computer platform also includes an operating system and micro instruction code. The various processes and functions described herein may be part of the micro instruction code or part of a software application program (or a combination thereof) that is run through the operating system. In addition, several other peripheral devices can be connected to the computer platform through various interfaces and bus structures, such as parallel port, serial port, or universal serial bus (USB). Other peripheral devices may include additional storage devices 28 and a printer 30. The printer 30 may be employed to print a revised version of film 32, for example, a stereoscopic version of the film, where text has been inserted into a scene or a plurality of scenes using the text input techniques described below. Additionally, a digital file 34 of the revised video or movie may be generated and provided to a 3D display device so that the 3D content and inserted text can be viewed by a viewer. Alternatively, digital file 34 may be stored in storage device 28.

A software program includes a word processing module 38 stored in memory 24 for combining text with 3D content in accordance with the present disclosure, as discussed in further detail below.

There are several techniques for presenting 3D content. The most common is stereoscopic display, which requires active or passive glass. Auto-stereoscopic displays using, for example, Lenticular, require no glass and are becoming more available for both home and professional entertainment. Many of these displays operate in 2D + depth format. In this format, 2D video and depth information are combined to create the 3D effect.

The present disclosure is directed to a method for inserting subtitles for listeners in 3D video for stereo and 2D + depth display media. For 2D + depth display media, the proposed method inserts caption text for listeners at the same level as the highest depth value in the image. More specifically, the depth value of the inserted listener caption can be continuously adjusted to match the larger depth value of the depth map. For stereo content, the proposed method adjusts the subtitle disparity value for listeners in the right image. This produces subtitles for more visually pleasing listeners that do not obstruct the 3D effects of video.

Listeners subtitles can be placed on a video signal in one of two ways: online (live) or offline (post production). Captioning for online listeners is made as an event occurs. Examples of subtitles for online listeners are television news programs, live seminars, and sporting events. Online subtitles for listeners can be made from a script, or actually created in real time. Caption for offline listeners is made "after the fact" in a studio. Examples of offline legacy include television game shows, videotapes or DVDs of films, corporate videotapes (eg training videos), films provided via cable, satellite or Internet, or the like. Listener subtitle text is created on a computer and synchronized with the video using timecodes. The text and video are then transferred to the videotape before it is transmitted or distributed.

In the present disclosure, the creation and distribution of subtitles for listeners preferably follows conventional procedures as known to those skilled in the art. For example, a conventional process is to create a text file from a script. 25 The text file contains three values (start frame, end frame, and text). The text is then repeated on all frames from the start frame to the end frame. The present disclosure is directed to adjusting the depth value of the text location such that the depth value of the text location matches the greater depth value in the video frame.

There are a variety of content formats and display media on the market including

reoscopic, holographic, and auto-stereoscopic among others. Referring now to the figure

2, one embodiment of the present disclosure is directed to an approach for inserting subtitles for listeners into auto-stereoscopic display media operating in 2D + depth format. Figure 2 illustrates an example of 2D + depth content format. More specifically, Figure 2 illustrates two types of content: a 2D image 40 and a depth map 42 of the 2D image. Depth map 42 defines the depth value for each pixel in the 2D image 40 with light pixels representing points near the viewer and dark pixels representing points distant from the viewer.

As discussed above, there are two ways to insert subtitles for listeners: online insertion for live content and offline insertion for postproduction content. As discussed below, the proposed methods of the present disclosure are directed to subtitling for listeners both offline and online.

Referring now to Figure 3, an example of a text box 50 inserted into a depth map 46 and the text 48 added to the 2D image 40 is shown. Text box 48 is the caption text for listeners as defined by the script, for example, while text box 50 represents a constant depth value at each point in the text box.

Referring now to Figure 4, an offline insertion process 52 of the present disclosure is shown. For subtitle insertion for offline listeners, subtitle text images for listeners are created and synchronized with 2D video using time codes in later production. The depth values of the entered text are determined by scanning, in step 54, the 3D video and calculating the max value. depth for each frame during content creation. A new text box is then inserted in step

56 at the caption location for listeners with depth value equal to max value. depth, and in step 58, the listener caption is added to the 2D image 44. This process should be done for the duration of the time interval set for the listener caption. It should be noted that steps 56 and 58 may be performed in any order and may preferably be performed simultaneously.

Referring now to Figure 5, a flowchart of the present disclosure is shown illustrating an online insertion process 60. In online processing, the location of the listener's legends is not known in advance and hence the value of pro- The depth of the subtitles for listeners cannot be determined in the same way as described for offline processing 52. As soon as the subtitle text for listeners is inserted, at step 62, the depth map of the start subtitle frame for listeners is scanned to determine the max value. depth and at step 64, the caption text for listeners is inserted at the max value. depth and at step 66 the listener caption is added to the 2D image. It should be noted that steps 64 and 66 may be performed in any order and may preferably be performed simultaneously. Later, in step 68, a determination is made as to whether additional processing resources exist. Depending on the processing available, the listener caption may be fixed in step 70 to the depth value of the first frame when additional processing is not available or the depth values of the following frames may be determined by repeating the steps. 62-66 online processing when additional processing is available.

Referring now to Figure 6, a flowchart of the present disclosure is shown illustrating the processing of 2D images having subtitles for inserted listeners. There are cases where listener captions are already inserted into the 2D image as if 3D content were converted from 2D content. For these cases, the location of listener subtitles can be identified in step 74 by listener subtitle region detectors, which are capable of detecting and locating listener subtitle regions in a frame using color and background information. texture. Subtitle region detection for listeners has been an active search direction in video processing search. According to current literature, for some videos, such as news videos, listener subtitle region detectors can achieve location accuracy above 95%. Therefore, subtitle region detectors for listeners must be safe enough for subtitle insertion for 3D listeners. After locating the listener caption area (that is, the text box coordinate is determined), in step 74, and the listener caption text is isolated (that is, the listener-specific caption pixels are determined), at step 76, from the image, the depth map of the caption start frame for listeners is fetched (e.g. scanned) to determine, at step 78, the max value. deep. Then, in step 80, the caption text for listeners is entered at the max value. in depth. Subsequently, the online insertion process steps 66-70 shown in figure 5 can be applied.

Referring now to Figure 7, the present disclosure may also be extended to cover stereoscopic content 82. For stereoscopic content the text in the left or right eye image is shifted to match the largest depth value in the stereoscopic image. For example, the text 88 may be fixed on the left eye image 25 84 but adjusted or varied on the right eye image 86. The variation of the text 90 on the right eye image 86 is proportional to the disparity of the stereo pair. The disparity value is inversely proportional to the depth value.

Eye variation is a shift in the horizontal direction. A negative offset (off screen text) is preferable for most applications. However, this revelation allows both negative and positive displacements of the text. The minimum allowable offset value is equal to the visually acceptable maximum positive value and the maximum allowable offset value is equal to the visually acceptable maximum negative value. Fig. 7 shows an example of stereo pair with an offset value of 10 pixels for text 90 in right eye image 86.

It should be noted that according to the present disclosure it is desirable to combine

Use text with 3D content (for example, stereoscopic content or 2D images and associated depth maps) such that the text is occasionally or continuously positioned at the maximum depth value of the 3D content. Below, various approaches to acquiring in-depth information from 3D content are discussed further.

Depth information acquisition can be done using active or passive techniques. Passive approaches acquire 3D geometry from images or videos made under regular lighting conditions. 3D geometry is computed using the geometric or photometric features extracted from images and videos. Active approaches use special light sources such as laser, frame light, or infrared light. They compute geometry based on the response of objects and scenes to the special light projected onto the surface.

Single view approaches retrieve 3D geometry using an image taken from a single camera point of view. Examples include depth and photometric stereo from defocus. Multiple view approaches retrieve 3D geometry from multiple images taken from multiple camera viewpoints, resulting from object movement, or with different light source positions. Stereo Matching is an example of multi-view 3D retrieval by matching of the pixels in the left image and right image in the stereo pair to obtain the depth information of the pixels.

Geometric methods retrieve 3D geometry by detecting geometric features such as corners, lines, or contours in single or multiple images. The spatial relationship between the extracted corners, lines or contours can be used to infer the 3D coordinates of the pixels in images. Photometric methods retrieve 3D geometry based on the shading or shadowing of the image patches resulting from the orientation of the scene surface.

For the application of the present disclosure, there are three possible types of content: computer generated content, stereo content, and 2D content. For computer generated content, as used in animation, depth information is available with very limited processing. For stereo content, the right and left image can be used to generate depth by matching the pixel in the left image with that in the right image. The most complex case is that of 2D content. Most current techniques involve extensive manual processing and should therefore be done offline. For digital cinema applications, 2D content is converted to stereo pair for playback in digital cinemas. After acquisition of the stereo pair, stereo techniques can be used to obtain a depth map. In general for subtitle applications for listeners, highly accurate and dense depth maps are not normally required.

While embodiments embodying the teachings of the present disclosure have been shown and described in detail herein, those skilled in the art can easily envision many other varied embodiments that still embody those teachings. Having described preferred embodiments for a system and method for parallel image processing in a networked computing environment with optimal image data splitting schemes (which are intended to be illustrative and not limited). It is noted that modifications and variations may be made by persons skilled in the art of the above teachings. Therefore, it should be understood that changes may be made to the specific embodiments of the disclosed disclosure which are within the scope of the disclosure as outlined by the appended claims.

Claims (38)

1. Method for combining text with three-dimensional image content, the method being CHARACTERIZED by the fact that it comprises the steps of: receiving (54) three-dimensional image content; determining (54) a maximum depth value for the three-dimensional content; and combining (58) text with the three-dimensional image content at maximum depth value. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the step of receiving three-dimensional image content includes receiving (54) a two-dimensional image (40) and a depth map (42). Method according to claim 2, characterized in that the step of determining (54) a maximum depth value includes detecting which object on the depth map has the maximum depth value. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the step of combining (58) text with three-dimensional content includes superimposing the text on the two-dimensional image and placing the text on the depth map at the maximum value of - fundamentality. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and the steps of determining (62) the maximum depth value and combining (64, 66) the text. with the three-dimensional image content at the maximum depth value occur for each frame. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and the steps of determining (62) the maximum depth value and combining (64, 66) the text. with the three-dimensional image content at maximum depth occur for less than all of the plurality of frames. A method according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of: determining (74) whether the three-dimensional content contains text; isolate (76) text from three-dimensional content; and combining (78, 80) the isolated text with the three-dimensional content at maximum depth value. Method according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the text is one between listeners subtitles, hidden legends and open legends. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the step of determining the maximum depth value for three-dimensional content includes detecting the maximum depth value of an object in a stereoscopic image (82), the stereoscopic image. (82) including a left eye image (84) and a right eye image (86). A method according to claim 9, characterized in that the step of combining text with the three-dimensional image includes: superimposing the text (88) on the left eye image (84); overlay the text (90) on the right eye image (86); and displacing the text 90 in the right eye image 86 such that the combined right eye and left eye text is displayed at the maximum depth value of the stereoscopic image. 11. Method of displaying text with three-dimensional image content, the method being characterized by the fact that it comprises the steps of: receiving (18, 20) three-dimensional image content and text, the three-dimensional image content having a maximum value of depth; display (36) the three-dimensional image content; and display (36) the text at the maximum depth value. A method according to claim 11, characterized in that it further comprises the step of: determining (54) the maximum depth value of the three-dimensional image content. A method according to claim 12, characterized in that the determining step (54) comprises detecting which object in the three-dimensional image content has the maximum depth value. A method according to claim 12, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and the steps of determining (62) the maximum depth value and displaying (36) the text in the value. maximum depth occur for each frame. A method according to claim 12, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and the steps of determining (62) the maximum depth value and displaying (36) the text in the value. maximum depth occur for a smaller number than all of the plurality of frames. Method according to claim 11, characterized by the fact that the text is one between listeners subtitles, hidden legends and open legends. A method according to claim 11, further comprising the steps of: determining (74) whether the three-dimensional content contains text; isolate (76) text from three-dimensional content; and display (36) the isolated text at the maximum depth value. A method according to claim 11, characterized in that the step of determining the maximum depth value for three-dimensional content includes detecting the maximum depth value of an object in a stereoscopic image (82), the stereoscopic image. including a left eye image (84) and a right eye image (86). The method of claim 18, wherein the step of combining text with the three-dimensional image includes: superimposing text (88) on the left eye image (84); overlay text (90) on the right eye image (86); and displacing the text 90 in the right eye image 86 such that the combined right eye and left eye text is displayed at the maximum depth value of the stereoscopic image. 20. System for combining text with three-dimensional image content, the system being characterized by the fact that it comprises: means for receiving (54) three-dimensional image content; means for determining (54) a maximum depth value for the three-dimensional content; and a means for combining (58) text with three-dimensional image content at maximum depth value. A system according to claim 20, characterized in that the means for receiving three-dimensional image content includes means for receiving (54) a two-dimensional image (40) and a depth map (42). A system according to claim 21, characterized in that the means for determining (54) a maximum depth value includes means for detecting which object on the depth map has the maximum depth value. System according to claim 20, characterized in that the means of combining (58) text with the three-dimensional content includes means for superimposing the text on the two-dimensional image and means for placing the text on the depth map at maximum value. deep. A system according to claim 20, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and means for determining (62) the maximum depth and medium value for combining (64, 66) the text. with the three-dimensional image content at the maximum depth value occur for each frame. A system according to claim 20, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and the means for determining (62) the maximum depth value and means for combining (64, 66) the text. with the three-dimensional image content at maximum depth occur for less than all of the plurality of frames. The system of claim 20, further comprising: means for determining (74) whether the three-dimensional content contains text; means for isolating (76) text from three-dimensional content; and means for combining (78, 80) the isolated text with the three-dimensional content at maximum depth value. 27. System according to claim 20, characterized by the fact that the text is one between listeners subtitles, hidden legends and open legends. System according to claim 20, characterized in that the means for determining the maximum depth value for the three-dimensional content includes means for detecting the maximum depth value of an object in a stereoscopic image (82); stereoscopic image (82) including a left eye image (84) and a right eye image (86). The system of claim 28, wherein the step of combining text with the three-dimensional image includes: means for overlaying the text (88) on the left eye image (84); means for overlaying the text (90) on the right eye image (86); and means for displacing text 90 in the right eye image 86 such that the combined right eye and left eye text is displayed at the maximum depth value of the stereoscopic image. 30. System for displaying text with three-dimensional image content, the system being characterized by the fact that it comprises: means for receiving (18, 20) three-dimensional image content and text, the three-dimensional image content having a maximum depth value; means for displaying (36) the three-dimensional image content; and a half to display (36) the text at the maximum depth value. A system according to claim 30, further comprising: means for determining (54) the maximum depth value of the three-dimensional image content. System according to claim 31, characterized in that the means for determining (54) comprises means for detecting which object in the three-dimensional image content has the maximum depth value. A system according to claim 31, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and the means for determining (54) the maximum depth and half value for displaying (36) the text in the value. maximum depth occur for each frame. System according to claim 31, characterized in that the three-dimensional image content includes a plurality of frames and the means for determining (54) the maximum depth value and the means for displaying (36) the text on the screen. maximum depth values operate in a smaller number than all of the plurality of frames. 35. System according to claim 30, characterized by the fact that the text is one of listeners, hidden legends and open legends. The system of claim 30 further comprising: means for determining (74) whether the three-dimensional content contains text; means for isolating (76) text from three-dimensional content; and a half to display (36) the isolated text at the maximum depth value. System according to claim 30, characterized in that the means for determining the maximum depth value for three-dimensional content includes means for detecting the maximum depth value of an object in a stereoscopic image (82). stereoscopic image including a left eye image (84) and a right eye image (86). A system according to claim 37, characterized in that the means for combining text with the three-dimensional image includes: means for overlaying text (88) on the left eye image (84); means for overlaying text (90) on the right eye image (86); and means for displacing text 90 in the right eye image 86 such that the combined right eye and left eye text is displayed at the maximum depth value of the stereoscopic image.